Omotenashi hospitality services introduced by transportation companies in the Kansai region for foreign visitors are increasingly expected to be a model for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Dong Fang, a 28-year-old staff member of a West Japan Railway Co. affiliate, works as a helping hand for foreign tourists crowding the platform of the Nara Line at JR Kyoto Station.
Fluent in Japanese and English in addition to her native Chinese, Dong helps foreign tourists get on the correct trains to visit Fushimi Inari Taisha, a Shinto shrine in Fushimi Ward famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates and a popular tourist site.